Posts Tagged With: Vancouver Canucks

I left Canada on Sunday and was arriving in Auckland on Tuesday (Monday…what the hell happened to you!!!) and would need to hit the ground running. Forget jet lag as I needed to get the keys to my new flat (yes, I get how I could have gotten screwed in this scenario but thankfully it didn’t happen); organize the movers and get all my things from storage and into the new flat; get over to the pub by noon to watch Game 3; and then get back to the flat to deal with getting settled once again.

Big day with a lot to get done but I was focused. I kept telling myself that this wasn’t as bad as it seemed and that soon I would be at the pub. I struggled to keep my eyes open as the movers hauled everything into my new flat. What kept me motivated was that I was going to see the Canucks win game 3.

Everything had gone exactly as planned until I got to the pub. There is only one pub in Auckland that plays the game and I was there amongst all the people who were on my Vancouver – Auckland flight. It was nice to be surrounded by fellow Canadians (mainly from Vancouver) who were as excited about the game as I was. What I hadn’t accounted for in my plan was Boston winning game 3. It was disgusting. It was devastating. It was too much for all of us.

I was counting on the win to give me my second wind but I was out of luck. All I could do was the slow walk back to my new flat (sadly, there’s also a slight hill), a quick search for my bedding and dumping the mattress on the ground and calling it a day. What a day! I was back in Auckland…my Canucks had lost…and I now had to call this strange new place home! I knew that going to bed before 5pm was a bad idea that would make adjusting to the time zone rather difficult but at that moment nothing mattered as the only thing that would brighten my day was sleep.

I woke up to the sound of thunder. At first I think its my imagination but then I hear it again and think there

All Us Girls

might have been a flash of light in the sky. I can hear the rain pounding against the windows. Yup – its my girl’s wedding day and the weather is just so poetic in ways that you couldn’t understand unless you knew her.

It’s an indoor wedding and so a little bad weather isn’t going to hurt anyone. And as we all know a little rain on your wedding day is good luck! The girls and I spend the rest of the day fluttering around and dealing with make-up, hair, mani/pedis and all that jazz as we get ready for the big day. This is more than just a wedding – this is the event of the year as far as I’m concerned (I mean come on, I’m the reasoning behind table “intervention” after all!).

It was one hell of a night and I feel privileged to have been a part of it. From the heartfelt speeches to getting the groom the score for game 2 (and possibly jumping up and down when the Canucks were victorious) to table intervention yelling out the good old “BOK” …these is what we live for! All I can say is in my head it belongs on a TV commercial. Flight from NZ to Toronto: $2000….Wedding Outfit: $300…Cost of Transportation to the Venue: $3…To be there when the couple that makes you believe love ties the knot: PRICELESS.

We’re cup bound!!! Its Game Day!!! I’m not surrounded by a sea of blue and green with fans going absolutely nuts all around the city…WHAT! So it turns out that even though I’m still in a Canadian city – its just not Vancouver. For some reason I expected the entire country to be a sea of blue and green to support the Canadian team in the Stanley Cup Finals. SHOCKING…I know! But no matter – I’ve found a bar and hanging out with the best of them to see Game 1 of the finals.

We may not be in Rogers Arena but we’ve got beer…we’ve got nachos…we’ve got heart! I’m surrounding by amazing people and even the groom-to-be (it may just be days before the wedding but this was a well deserved break from a little speech writing if I do say so myself!) It’s a nail-biter but the Nucks take Game 1 and everyone starts to hoot and holla – well maybe it was just us and the other table full of Vancouverites but as far as I’m concerned that’s everyone at the bar as we’re the only ones that count!

It’s strange as there’s a part of me that would give up anything to be in Vancouver at this moment but I look around at my posse of misfits and know that this is where I’m meant to be. I’m finally amongst friends (and not the starter kind) and that in itself it as good as win.

From the moment I arrived in Vancouver to the moment I left – the Canucks were the big story. In Auckland they would ask me what a “Canuck” was or if I was rambling on again about “ice hockey” but at home there was no questions just cup fever. It was as if the city was swimming in a sea of blue and green with “Go Canucks Go” as the official mantra.

I was home to see the battle between the Orca and Sharks. Playoff parties meant delightful and deep-friedfinger foods as the teams battled it out. Everyone had their rituals and superstitions. Whether it meant a game watching ritual or not washing the lucky socks or jersey – each person had their way of supporting the Canucks.

Then before I knew it, it was Game 5 and the day before I left Vancouver. The Canucks were up in the series 3-1 and I wanted nothing more to see them win before getting on that plane. In the dying seconds of the 3rd period, Kesler tied the game and everyone was going nuts! We were still in it and could win the west in overtime! We all sat there with bated breath and then in a blink of an eye in the 2nd OT – Bieksa scores. It was insane and its official – we’re cup bound! GO CANUCKS GO!!!